Modern Foreign Languages

Learning a foreign language is an exciting opportunity that will foster students’ curiosity and deepen their understanding of the world. It will give them a sense of mutual understanding and global citizenship. By studying a foreign language, students will learn to express their ideas and thoughts in another tongue. They will understand and respond to its speakers, both in speech and writing.

You can click on any of the documents on the left-hand side of this page for further information about each course.

What will I learn?

From Year 7 to Year 11, learners will follow the AQA French/Spanish GCSE specification. Both of these qualifications will be examined at the end of Year 11. Language learning at key stage 3 will provide the foundation for learning further languages at GCSE, equipping pupils to study and work in other countries in the future.

At Magna Academy, we teach both French and Spanish.

Through studying these languages, students will discover and develop an understanding of a variety of authentic sources. They will develop listening, speaking, reading and writing skills, based on a foundation of core grammar and vocabulary across a range of topics. Learning a language will allow students to increase their confidence, independence and creativity.

The AQA GCSE course is taught in three themes which are:

Identity and culture

Local, national, international and global areas of interest.

Current and future study and employment

What will I do?

Learners will cover a variety of language skills across a range of grades to help push them to be the best linguist that they can be. Learners will engage with a variety of activities depending upon what they are learning, to enhance their learning experiences in Languages.

What is the expectation of homework?

All homework will be set weekly by the class teacher during the lesson and is due in the following week. This will give ample opportunity for learners to complete their homework and seek support if they are struggling with it. The homework set will vocabulary learning and a language task such as an exam style question or note taking.

The homeworks set will cover key topic areas that you will be required to know for your GCSE French/Spanish exams, however they may not necessarily be topics that you have already learnt.

What support and guidance will I be given?

Vocabulary acquisition skills are a crucial part of language learning, your teachers will support you by helping you to develop strategies to learn vocabulary, key structures and grammar points. This is an integral part of our language teaching and will enable students to become independent learners. Lesson time will be dedicated to act upon the regular feedback that your teacher has given you, to ensure that you make ‘Outstanding’ progress in languages. There will also be workshop sessions offered to all learners to attend after school, to gain additional support and new learning.

Key Stage 4 students will have an individual login to access Vocabexpress which is an online vocabulary learning application that is designed to support independent learning.

How will I be assessed?

Throughout Year 7 to 11 learners will be assessed each half term using published assessments relating to the exam specification, to help them understand the standard required and to enable students to practise sitting exam-style questions. These internal assessments are pivotal to track the progress of learners.

What equipment do I need to be successful?

We expect all of the learners at Magna to attend their lessons with the correct equipment so that their learning is not affected. All learners should have pens, pencils, a ruler, a rubber, highlighters and a green pen. Students would benefit from their own copies of a French and/or Spanish dictionary depending on the courses that they are studying.

What other opportunities exist outside of class?

We strongly believe that language learning should not only happen in the classroom, but should be experienced in as many different ways as possible. Learners will have the opportunity to take part in the Languages film club, which provides them with authentic cultural experiences.

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